Boot and shoe fastening.



S. WEATHEELEY.

BOOT AND SHOE FASTENER,

APPLICATION HLED MAY i2, 915.

Patented Jam. 18, 1916.

313 171 masons area.

OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

.1860)? AND SHOE FASTENING.

Application fil ed May 12,

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, STUART WEATHERLEY,

a. subject of the King-of England, and a resident of London, England, have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in Boot and Shoel astenings, of which the following is a specification.

-The object of this invention is to provide an improved than of flexible link as one of a set of such links which may be utilized for a shoe fastening in the manner illus trated in the accompanying drawing.

The present invention relates more particularly to the terminal hooks or the like,

for a. coil-spring structure possessing pecul-' iar conformation, characteristics and functions adapted to render the use of such a device entirely practical, convenient and preferable of employment over the usual lacing threaded through eyelets carried by the shoe.

In the accompanying draWing, I igure 1 is a partial top plan View of a shoe equipped with an embodiment of the present inven* tion; Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail plan view of one of the fastening devices; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional vie-w taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4- is a. transverse sectional view on the line 4i-l of Fig. 8;

and Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4: taken on the line 55 of Fig. 3.

Similar reference characters refer to simi lar parts throughout the several views of the drawing.

85 The device as shown in detail in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 consists of a central flexible and resilient portion 7. This central portion is preferably flattened top and bottom so that each coil lies fiat upon the shoe.

On one end of the device a portion 8 of the wire of which the coils 7 are constructed is bent aWayfi-om thecenter soas to be offset to extend parallel with the longitudinal center line of the upper side of the coils. This portion 8 is thereafter bent so that an almost completely closed hook 9 is formed, as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 5. It will be seen that when said hook 9 is looped through the eyelet 6, a slight finger-tip pressure exerted thereon will cause the hook to become still further closed and, sailiciently for all practical purposes, anchor the device fast to the eyelet. v The hook 11 at the opposite end of the device, shown in Figs. 2, ,3 ands is formed so that its free end 11 is arranged or formed so that the Specification of Patented lands, isle. 1915. Serial ivma'zeer.

Letters Patent.

the upper side of said' coils, as in 8, and

formingthe hook portions with their frec'aa ends in the form of a. loop having aTcomparatively wide lateral dimension, the plane I of the loop of one heck being oblique'to thatof the other and the plane of theloo of of said last named hook being parallel wit 7a the plane of maximum lateral dimension of said spring coil. This forms a lock means of which the hook 9 is prevented from being accidentally disengaged from the eyelet 6, as will be seen by a reference to .75 Fig. 3;

The hook 11 is located preferably in-- clined downwardly toward the toe of the" shoe 5, when the device is inuse. A person.

wearing the shoe and who is stooping to '80 I adjust or engage one of said devices with its eyelet 6, swings the free end with the hook 11 inthe-direction of the arrow 12 of Fig. Q'and then in the direction of the arrow 12'} of Fig. 4. When it is desired to ifes5 move frominterengagement the said hook 11 from the eyelet 6 it will be seen that it is merely necessary to place the tip O'fthe finger against the point indicated at 13 on the coil (Fig. 2) and then pull toward the top of the shoe, that is, in the directiori'of the arrow 14, whereupon-the hook I1 is immediately and easily slipped free of its eyelet 6, In releasing the following movement takes place: first, thehook at 11 (Fig. 4), 95. contacts and abuts againstpoint 15 of the eyelet 6, and next, the oblique position of the hook l1 permits thesame smoothly and easily to slideifree of the eyelet 6, in the direction of the arrow 16 in Fig. 4a. This particular feature of the invention is described. in detail on account or" its importance in producinga simple and practical device in theory and practice in connection with the development of the present inve'n- 10!, tion.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a unitary bent wire member, havinga'n intermediate portion composed of a plurality of no flattened spring coils and having oil-set.

. from each end "thereof a hook portion, one

' portion,

of said hooks being arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the other hook.

2. In a device of the class described, a unitary bent wire member, having an intermediate portion composed of a plurality of flattened spring coils and having offset from each end thereof a hook portion, one

of said hooks being arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the other book, each of said hooks consisting of an extension of the wire bent first at right angles to said intermediate portion, then bent back upon it self in the form of a loop with a portion parallel with said first portion, andhaving its end wound about said first portion.

3. In a device of the class descrlbed, a unitary bent wire member, having an intermediate portion composed of a plurality of flattened spring coils and having offset rom each end thereof ahook portion, one of said hooks being arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the other hook, each of said hooks consisting of an extension of the wire bent first at right angles to said intermediate portion and then bent back upon itself, its end being wound about said first the free end being in the form of a loop having a comparatively wide lateral dimension, the plane of the loop bf one hook being oblique to that of the other and the plane of the-loop of said last named hook being parallel with lateral dimension of said spring coil.

4. In a device of the class described, a

unitary bent wire member, having an intermediate portion composed of a plurality of ,fiattened spring coils and having offset from each end thereof a hook portion, one of said hooks being arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the other-hook, each of said hooks consisting of an extension of the wire of said coils bent first at right angles to said the plane of maximum intermediate portion and then bent back upon itself, its end being wound about sald first bent portion, the free end being in the bottom surface "each end thereof a hook portion, one of said hooks being arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the other hook, each of said hooks consisting of an extension of the wire of said coils bent first at right angles to said intermediate portion and then bent back upon itself, its end being wound about said first bent portion, the free end being in the form of a loop having a comparatively wide lateral dimension, the plane of the loop of one hook being oblique to that of .theother but parallel with of a plurality of and the plane of the loop of said-last named hook being parallel withthe plane of the maximum lateral dimension of said intermediate portion and extending longitudinally of the center line of said portion and 1 slightly below the bottom surface thereof under the adjacent end of said intermediate portion.

Signed at the city, county and State of New-York, this 15th day of April, 1915. STUART WEATHERLEY.

Witnesses:

PERCIVAL E. JACKSON,

LEWIS J. DooLrr'rLn, 

